Dakhla Wind-Powered Desalination
Wind-powered RO, 37 million m3/year (about 100,000 m3/day at signing, about 112,000 m3/day in 2025-2026 reports), of which 30 million m3/year for irrigation of about 5,000 ha and 7 million m3/year for drinking water; dedicated 60 MW wind farm in Morocco.
Under construction
The record
- Country
- Morocco
- Location
- Dakhla
- Coordinates
- 23.680, -15.950
- Technology
- Wind-powered RO
- Capacity
- 37 million m3/year (about 100,000 m3/day at signing, about 112,000 m3/day in 2025-2026 reports), of which 30 million m3/year for irrigation of about 5,000 ha and 7 million m3/year for drinking water; dedicated 60 MW wind farm
- Capital cost
- MAD 2.6 bn total investment (Agriculture Minister, February 2026), converted at MAD 9.35 per US$ (World Bank official exchange rate, 2025 average, the latest full year)
- Stage
- Under construction
- Owner or client
- ONEE with the Ministry of Agriculture (PPP)
- Contractor
- Dakhla Water and Energy Company (DAWEC), owned in equal shares by Nareva (Al Mada) and International Power (Engie); wind turbines by Envision Energy
- Operator
- DAWEC (20-year operation)
- Finance
- PPP; infrastructure cost estimated at about MAD 2 billion at signing in 2022; total investment put at MAD 2.6 billion by the Agriculture Minister in 2025-2026
- Award or start year
- 2022
- Commissioned
- —
Record last checked 2026-09-15.
History
- 2019-11
PPP contracts signed, according to the Agriculture Minister in 2026
- 2021-06
Provisional authorisation for the wind park granted on 8 June
- 2022-06
Memorandum of understanding and PPP agreements signed with the Agriculture Ministry and ONEE on 22 June
- 2022-12
Construction works begin
- 2025-03
60 MW wind farm completed and injects its first gigawatt-hours into the grid
- 2026-02
Project 85% complete (desalination plant 75%, irrigation network 86%)
- 2026-05
Reverse osmosis units installed
- 2026-08
Plant reported almost ready to begin operating
Sources
11 references
Every field in the record above is taken from the references below. A field that none of them confirms prints as a dash.
- Le360, Dakhla: feu vert pour la construction d'une station de dessalement d'eau de mer et d'un parc éolien, 23 June 2022. fr.le360.ma.
- (memorandum of understanding and PPP agreements signed with the Agriculture Ministry, ONEE and DAWEC on 22 June 2022; 37 million m3/year; 5,000 ha; infrastructure cost about MAD 2 billion; 20-year operation).
- Le Desk, Engie et Nareva scellent leur accord avec l'Etat pour une usine de dessalement d'eau de mer à Dakhla, 22 June 2022. ledesk.ma.
- (memorandum of understanding and PPP agreements signed by ONEE, the Agriculture Ministry and DAWEC; the rest of the article is behind the Desk's paywall).
- Ministry of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development, Projet de parc Dakhla 40 MW. mem.gov.ma.
- (DAWEC's capital held in equal shares by Nareva Renouvelables and International Power, a subsidiary of Engie; provisional authorisation 8 June 2021; the ministry lists the wind park at 40 MW, whereas Médias24 in March 2025 reports 60 MW, the figure used in this row).
- Médias24, Premières injections d'électricité par le parc éolien de Dakhla, 18 March 2025. medias24.com.
- (60 MW wind farm completed and injecting its first GWh).
- Assahifa, Morocco's Dakhla Water Project on Track for Early 2026 Operations, 21 February 2026. assahifa.com.
- (Agriculture Minister: MAD 2.6 billion, 30 million m3/year for 5,000 ha and 7 million m3/year for drinking water, works began December 2022, progress figures). 7news Morocco, Wind-powered desalination plant in Dakhla almost ready, 3 August 2026. en.7news.ma.
- MENA Water Review major projects register and PPP pipeline — compiled from procurer publications, development-bank project pages and trade reporting; each record names its source.
(status in August 2026). Assahifa (21 February 2026, above) also reports the Agriculture Minister stating that the PPP contracts were signed in November 2019, with excerpts in the Official Gazette of 12 March 2020.